Stay in Line
by Veraison
Summary: Corporal Rivaille had thought Eren Jaeger to be a bit immature, but all in all a responsible young man. He had been wrong.
1. Chapter 1

Eren knew he had fucked up. He shouldn't have done it, shouldn't have done that. But he had done it, anyways. And now was too late to turn back.

He knew that Corporal Rivaille had been very simple with his order.

"Stay right there!"

But how could he do that? When everybody else was out there, risking their lives? Was he supposed to sit in peace and wait? Yes, he was aware that the enemy wanted him. And if he ended up being kidnapped, it would cause a shitload of trouble.

He had calculated the risk and made his decision. It was worth it.

Everything went better than he had expected. Better than anybody had expected. The titans had been mostly seven meters in height, hadn't shown any intelligence, so the target had been easy and the result could hardly be called a victory, more a successful exercise. Still, everyone seemed relieved. All of Eren's friends had survived, only minor injuries. All of them were of course tired, but that was nothing.

Eren tried to catch his breath. He was exhausted. But then again, it was worth it. He smiled at Armin and nodded thanks to Mikasa, who had had his back through the battle.

Then he saw Corporal Rivaille. Corporal looked calm and composed, as always. However his eyes were cold as ice and burning as fire. He didn't seem to notice Eren and just walked away. His black boots were covered in blood.

Eren swallowed. Everything had gone better than expected, but there was the aftermath to be dealt with it.

And the aftermath was a very irritated Corporal.

Corporal Rivaille had thought Eren Jaeger to be a bit immature, but all in all a responsible young man.

He had been wrong. Eren Jaeger was nothing but a stupid boy, who believed in naivety. A soldier unable to follow orders was as good as a dead soldier. No, even worse. Dead soldiers didn't endanger the plan and their brothers-in-arm, unlike those, who stepped out of line.

Eren Jaeger had taken a giant leap out of the line. That couldn't be overlooked. Something had to be done with this boy.

Eren unleashed his 3D Maneuver gear. He was dirty and sweaty, but fatigue overtook him and he fell asleep before even undressing himself.

It was midnight, when somebody knocked on the door of his room. There was no light, so Eren climbed out of his bed in dark and made carefully his way to the door. His room was rather messy, clothes lying on the floor, his boots had been kicked under his bed. So he opened his door while only wearing his socks. Luckily he had fallen asleep with his uniform on.

The person at his door was a young girl, maybe some years older than him. She had short, light hair, which was a little curly. There was no sign of lack of sleep to be seen in her. She stood very straight.

"Lance Corporal Rivaille wants to see you."

Eren sighed. Why now? He was so tired. And he knew Corporal wanted an explanation. Not only as his superior but as his friend.

Eren wasn't sure if the friendship was mutual, but he liked to think about Corporal as his friend. It helped when he felt isolated from everyone else.

One day the Corporal had given him a book. A book about the world outside. He hadn't said anything, just shushed Eren when he tried to thank him.

There was no time for Eren to put his boots on, so he followed the messenger with only socks in his feet.

The corridor was empty and its floor was cold. The girl made slowly her way to Corporal's room, with Eren on her heels.

Rivaille had absolutely no idea, what to say to Eren Jaeger. He understood why the boy had done what he had done. It was not the wisest decision, but still, it was a humane one. That kind of decision couldn't be allowed at the field.

The door opened and Jaeger came in. He closed the door. Rivaille sat on his bed and stared at the cadet. The cadet stared at the floor. He wasn't wearing any kind of shoes, Rivaille realized.

"Well brat, I suppose you know why you are here." His voice wasn't cold, but it wasn't friendly either. He was a Corporal and a damn good one, he had lectured young soldiers before.

Jaeger nodded and replied: "Yes sir."

"Do you have anything to say?" At this point, some of youngsters broke. They started crying or snapped. And even if he didn't approve that kind of behavior, Rivaille understood it. It was not easy to see comrades and friends dying. One never was ready to see that and no matter how many times one had to see titans terrorizing, the pain was always as horrible and overwhelming.

"No sir." Jaeger kept his eyes on the floor. Well, if the boy felt guilty, this wouldn't take very long. After all, his misbehaving hadn't caused any problems and the only people who knew about it, were in the room right now. Eren Jaeger and Corporal Rivaille.

The silent was heavy in the air. Rivaille wasn't still sure, what to say. Should he give the boy a strict lecture? Should he slap him? Tell him he was useless when not staying in the line? Suddenly Rivaille felt very tired and too old for a man his age.

He turned to look at Eren.

"Listen kid, there's nothing wrong with looking after your friends. There's nothing wrong with wanting to protect them. But you are not a general soldier. You must take care of yourself first. What if you die just because of a stupid mistake? We don't have tons of people like you, do we? And neither general soldiers can do as they wish. Sometimes you don't know the whole situation, usually you don't know anything about the situation. So you have to stick to the plan, follow your orders. Otherwise, you might blow the fucking plan and what happens to your friends then?"

Eren didn't reply, only bit his lip and tried to keep his eyes on the floor.

"What happens to your friends then?" Rivaille repeated.

"They die, sir." The answer was made with a soft but still clear voice.

"Yes, they do. But I can't promise you they don't die, if you stick to the plan. However, I can promise

you, sticking to the plan will take the blame off your shoulders. In court and hopefully in your own mind."

"Yes sir."

Rivaille wondered, if he was supposed to conform the boy. He seemed to be down and Rivaille had no use to depressed soldiers. He sighed. How did he end up to these situations?

"If this happens never again, we can keep this between the two of us." It was not a hug, nor a friendly slap on the back, but it was something.

Eren lifted his gaze from the floor and for a short moment, looked Rivaille straight in the eyes. The boy's eyes surprised him. His eyes had a defeated look in them, and defeated was hardly a word to describe Eren with.

"Thank you sir."

Rivaille rubbed his brow. When had this headache begun?

"Spit it out Jaeger. What's wrong?"

Eren was taken aback. He knew that Corporal Rivaille wasn't nearly as cold and cruel as rumors said. This was a surprise still. He had asked Eren a rather personal question and was expecting an answer. A good answer. So Eren cleared his throat and did his best.

"I'm not sure sir. I just, I don't feel very good." It was a bad excuse. Soldiers didn't let their mood affect them at the field.

"Are you sick?" Oh great. If the boy had something that spread easily, everyone would soon be ill. And sicknesses were often messy and dirty. Vomit, diarrhea, spit, snot… Rivaille loathed them.

"No sir. It's more a feeling. I just don't know."

"Well, then there's nothing we can do. You can go back to your room."

Eren bowed and turned to face the door. As he opened it, Rivaille told him to wake up early.

"You have the cleaning duty to do", the Corporal said and then closed the door.

Eren was left alone in the dark corridor.

The night was full of terrors. He dreamed about his mother and every dream ended with a titan eating his mother. Sometimes his mother was screaming until the titan bit her head off. Sometimes his mother didn't have time to scream, before the titan pulled her legs and arms off, as if she was a ragdoll. Eren had woken up a dozen of times, but no matter how hard he tried to keep his consciousness, the sleep won over.

When the sun finally rose, Eren felt as he had slept only for a minute. He clothed himself as fast as he could and then hurried to clean the bathroom. Eren pinched himself, so he would stay awake and not fall asleep while washing toilets. It was a horrible job. Many people used the toilets every day and it seemed that at least half of them had stomach problems. Eren got on his knees and started to scrub the filth away. The faster he worked, the sooner he could leave this duty behind.

There was no end to this job, Eren thought. He had scrubbed and scrubbed, but there was still so much to do. Eren knew that Corporal himself would make sure the job was done perfectly. And the Corporal was very strict with cleaning, so there was no easy way out.

Eren's knees had started to hurt and his hands were dry from all the scrubbing. His back was on fire because of the position in which he had done the cleaning. On his fours, like a dog. He stretched a bit before he wiped the door knobs. He was ready, so he made his way to the Corporal's door. Eren's stomach already demanded breakfast, but he knew better than to sneak out before the Corporal had checked the outcome. His stomach grumbled rather loudly.

"Jaeger, are you done?"

Rivaille wasn't satisfied with himself. He had ordered the boy to clean. It was a punishment, yes, but it suited more to a typical teenager than a soldier. Of course, Eren was as much a teenager as a soldier, and Rivaille didn't know, which side of him had done against orders.

"Yes sir, I'm ready!" the boy replied, loud and clear his voice was. That was good, Rivaille hated the ones who muttered and seemed to soil their pants if he as much as looked at them. When he had started his career, it amused him, but soon he grew tired of the behavior. Scared soldiers did stupid mistakes.

Rivaille looked over the bathroom. Everything was clean. There was always of course something that could use little bit more washing and scrubbing, but because Jaeger had seemingly learned his lesson, there was no need for extra labor.

"Can I go now sir?" the boy asked, eager to go. No wonder, he had to be hungry. If Rivaille remembered right, Jaeger had training session after breakfast.

"Yes, you can", he said, not looking at the boy. He gazed out of the window, the sky was gray and promised rain.

Jaeger turned to go, when Rivaille added: "Eat as much as you can, you need it."

Eren stood still for a moment and then said hesitatingly: "Yes sir, thank you for the concern."

Rivaille wanted to slap himself. Why was he counseling the boy? They were comrades indeed, but Eren was just one of many. To add more stupidity to his comment, the boy was fifteen. He surly was aware of how much he should eat. Luckily, he had gone before Rivaille could embarrass himself further.

For things like this, Rivaille decided, he shouldn't start his day without coffee.

Eren made his way to the dining hall. He spotted Mikasa sitting in the table in front of the window. Mikasa was alone and had already eaten, when Eren came.

"What took you so long? Armin had to go already", Mikasa asked. Eren tasted his porridge before giving an answer. The porridge was bland and cold, but that was his own fault, coming to the breakfast so late.

"Corporal Rivaille had me cleaning the bathroom." He didn't feel like explaining the whole situation. If Mikasa knew that he hadn't followed orders given especially to him, she would lecture him, tell him that everyone would have survived just fine, even if he hadn't risked himself. Mikasa was concerned with his safety. Some days it bothered him, but he understood mostly. They were what was left of their family.

"Well, that's too bad. Good that you even had time to eat at all. Don't you have training soon?" Mikasa gave him a little smile to let him know that she was happy to see him. They hardly could spend time together.

Eren gulped down the last spoonful of his breakfast. "Yeah. I hope it's someone nice."

The people who trained them were all very strict, which was understandable. The skill of using 3D Maneuver gear was a matter of life and death. Still, some were far more pleasing to be around than others.

"I don't know who has the turn today. But don't they give you private lessons?" Mikasa was right. Eren didn't take lessons with everybody else. He hated, it took time away from being with his friends. The reason, or so they told him, was that he was an expectation. He was no general soldier. He needed to learn some things differently. The real reason, or so Eren felt, was because they were afraid. They were scared that he would transform during training.

"They do", Eren muttered and yawned. The sleepless night was taking its toll. Then the bell rang and the last people sitting in the cafeteria, including him and Mikasa, left.

It was raining, when Rivaille got out. The training grounds were in a horrible shape. The ground was muddy and the climbing wall was wet and slippery. The hay dolls stood high, some of them were seven meters and one was fifteen. The others were from between ten and twelve. All f them were shaggy, the rain had wet the hay in them.

Eren was ten minutes late. He had talked with Mikasa, gone to toilet and done everything unnecessary after breakfast instead of going straight to the training. He truly hoped that one of the nice teachers was in turn today.

He fastened his phase when he saw someone standing in the training field. The heavy rain made it impossible to figure out, who the person was. When he jogged closer, Eren's heart stuck to his throat. It was Corporal Rivaille. But he didn't teach anyone. Fuck this, if Eren had had any idea, he would have come as soon as he could. Now the Corporal had stood in rain god knows how long and it was easy to see that he wasn't about it.

"Jaeger, you are fifteen minutes behind the schedule. How is that possible?" The rain was cold but not as cold as the Corporal's voice.

"I'm sorry sir", Eren murmured.

Rivaille shook his head, disappointed in the boy's lack of will.

"You can start with running three times around the field."

Three times around. That was easy. Many teachers used the method known as "as many rounds as minutes".

When Eren was done with running, his clothes were as wet as if he had swum instead of running. His hair was glued to his forehead.

He ran to the Corporal to hear the rest of the training.

"What the hell Jaeger! These are the basics! How you don't do them right?" Rivaille was yelling so much his throat hurt. Jaeger had done simple mistakes, as he was first time and not a member of the legion. Of course, the rain made everything harder, but that was no excuse. Titans could attack on rainy days too.

"My bad sir!" Eren replied. He was out of breath. He tried his best, but the muddy ground made him trip over and the slippery wall was not easy to climb with the Maneuver. Eren was frustrated with himself and with the Corporal. He had to know how hard this was during the rain.

"Do it again! And get that shit right this time!"

How many hours had they done this? Six at least. They skipped lunch. Rivaille didn't care about that, but he knew that Eren Jaeger was a growing boy. Hunger was killing him at this moment, no doubt.

"Take a break. Twenty minutes. Eat something. And then come straight back."

The boy nodded eagerly and ran inside after giving an "yessir".

Eren came back in time and they continued until the sunset.

"Tomorrow come here after breakfast. We need to work on your skills", Corporal Rivaille told Eren. He was barely listening, the day had tired him completely. He was so glad it was over.

"Yes sir", he replied and then bowed. Hopefully this night wouldn't be a nightmare.

It was. He shivered from the coldness, but when he covered himself with a blanket, he felt like sweating his skin off. The darkness suffocated him. His dreams were similar to the dreams of the previous night, just that night his mother wasn't there. No, the titan was eating Mikasa or Armin or Jean or Sasha or, strangely enough, Corporal Rivaille. Every time he woke, he told himself that every one of these people was skilled enough not to get eaten. It didn't help. Finally he kept his eyes open with his fingers. It was better to be tired than to see those dreams. Those dreams didn't even let him rest, it felt so real. The sun shone in and Eren climbed out of his bed. If he was late again, the Corporal would have his head.

"And late again Jaeger. What is this shitty behavior? Can't you read the clock?" Rivaille was furious. He was training the boy, who some called "humanity's last hope" and that hope was late again and again, couldn't do the basics.

"I'm sorry sir. I overslept." Eren had closed his eyes for a shot moment. And apparently he had fallen asleep.

"You better be sorry. I have other things to do than just fucking wait for you. Run five rounds."

Eren ran, but the running made his head dizzy. He hadn't had time to eat breakfast, so his stomach made noise and his legs felt weak and trembled. He kept running, trying to focus on jogging and not to his mood.

Jaeger jogged lazily. As if he thought he had all the time in the world.

"Faster Jaeger!" he told him as loudly as he could without screaming. Screaming was very unprofessional. Jaeger stopped running and leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees. The boy couldn't be this much out of shape, now could he?

"Why did you stop? We don't have time for some break", Rivaille asked, going closer to the boy.

"I'm sorry sir. My head hurts badly and my stomach cramps. I just, I can't." Eren felt like throwing up. He prayed he wouldn't do that, there wasn't very much to puke out. Also, the Corporal would probably kill him if he did that.

The boy did look pale and sick, Rivaille thought. Training was no use, if he was sick. It would only make Jaeger feel worse and the little fever he had now, could bloom to some serious illness. That would do no good.

"What's wrong with you then?" Rivaille was worried, of course. If there was something grave wrong with the boy, they would be in trouble with the titans.

Eren pondered for a moment, if he should tell the Corporal all of it.

"I didn't eat anything since yesterday's lunch. I overslept this morning, because I haven't slept for two days. All I see is nightmare."

Eren shut his mouth. If he talked anymore, he would throw up for sure.

Rivaille inspected the boy. Then he put his hand on Eren's forehead. The cadet's forehead felt warm and moist.

"Go to your room, right now. I will fetch you a doctor", Rivaille ordered. The boy seemed confused.

"Go!" Rivaille snarled and slapped the boy lightly on his bottom. Eren blushed but went on his way.

**A/N:** So people, here it is! I'm trying to give these two as realistic relationship as I can. Sex will come later.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Thank you so much for following and favoring! Comments make my day and make me update faster!

There was no doctor to be found in the whole fucking building. Rivaille had cursed and threatened people, but that was no use. So he went to his own room and took his first aid-kit under his bed. There wasn't much stuff, only thermometer, some medicines and band aids. He still took it with him.

Eren's nose was stuffed. He couldn't breathe through it. His head was throbbing and he was sweating. Lying on the bed was all he could do. He closed his eyes and breathed in and out.

Rivaille had to ask his way to Eren's room. He was not sure, if the boy would be comfortable with his Corporal as his doctor, but there was no other choice. He had taken the basic class in first aid and by years he had learned some more about typical illnesses. If they were lucky, Jaeger only had a little flu.

Jaeger's door was locked. Rivaille knocked it with force. He heard steps coming from inside the room and soon Eren opened the door. The boy looked even worse than before. His eyes were tired, he could hardly keep them open. His nose was full of snot, according to the way he breathed. Rivaille immediately gave him tissues.

"Blow your nose, it will ease your breathing", he told Eren and made the boy sit down. Eren nodded and did as he was told. Soon there was a dozen of tissues on the floor. Rivaille cleaned them off and then poured Eren some water.

"Drink this and take the medicine." Rivaille had no idea, what was the medicine for, but he knew it was some sort of medicine of the flu.

Eren looked suspiciously at the pill the Corporal gave him. It was rather big and green. He should swallow it whole. He put the pill in his mouth and drank the whole class of the water. The pill made its way down more easily than he had expected. The water moisturized his dry lips and helped ease the pain in his throat.

"I can get you some bread that was left from breakfast, if you want?" Rivaille proposed. Then he felt like eating his word. He was no one's servant and the boy was seemingly healthy enough to get his food himself.

A shy smile grew on Eren's lips.

"Thank you, it would be nice." Bread sounded good, it would take away the dizziness in his head.

Rivaille sighed and shouted to a young girl, a rookie who was walking by Eren's room when Rivaille opened the door, to get him some bread from the kitchen. And very quickly. Then he pushed Eren to lie down and covered the boy with a blanket.

"Don't you dare to get up before I give you the permission." Rivaille pulled a book out of his pocket, it was one of titan handbooks he had. Lots of facts in pocket size. He pulled a chair from the corner closer to Eren's bed and sat down.

Eren was surprised. Why was the Corporal staying in his room? Didn't he have something more important to do?

"I can survive on my own", Eren stated. First the Corporal showed no sign of hearing, but then he put his book down on his knee and raised his eyebrows at Eren.

"I'm in charge of you. And I was the one, who made you train so long in the rain." Rivaille felt a bit of guilty because of that. He should have cancelled the training.

"Are you feeling any better?" Rivaille continued, when Eren didn't reply.

"Yes, my head doesn't hurt so much anymore. And when I get something to eat, it will ease my stomach."

As if she had been called, the young rookie brought Eren's bread and a cup of coffee. She put the tray down to the nightstand and then, after giving a little bow, exited the room.

Eren took the bread in his hand. It was warm and the bread crust was crusty. He tasted it. It was really good, even without butter. The taste was sweet, not as salty as normal bread. It felt soft in his mouth, but the crust was tough to chew. Corporal Rivaille had taken the coffee and was sipping it, even though it was still steaming. They didn't speak for a moment, Eren being focused on eating and Rivaille deep in thought.

"I assume Jaeger can't beat his illness by transformation?" Rivaille thought aloud.

Hanji corrected the position of her glasses.

"No. He can heal physical wounds very fast, but a normal illness, like this flu, is different business. We just have to give him time to rest."

Rivaille moaned in frustration. Time was something they didn't have. Eren had to be trained. He lacked some basic skills. Of course, everybody has flaws, Rivaille was aware of that bullshit. But Eren couldn't be a regular soldier, he couldn't be allowed to have flaws. The whole humanity would pay for his mistakes.

And it wasn't just training that Eren lacked. He was too stubborn, his temper was too quick, he was too hotheaded, and too much an individual. Rivaille didn't know if Eren would sacrifice himself for others. For his friends for sure, but for the whole humanity and without hesitation. Because an ideal soldier didn't hesitate, he did as he was bid and he did it fast. Eren wasn't like that. His latest mistake at the field had proved it to Rivaille, and he was worried. If the boy was their last hope, their greatest hope, they had a long way to go. And he knew who was going to be in charge of Eren's training. Physically and mentally. He was fucked up.

"I'm a little worried of Eren's nightmares", Hanji said, "You told me that they were rather extreme. And we know that his transformation and his feelings are somehow connected. His nightmares obviously make him emotional and in his dreams he is vulnerable. If he transforms in his sleep, he might break the whole building and cause damage, because he is freaking huge."

Rivaille looked at Hanji.

"So? I'm very aware of that." He hoped she wasn't going to suggest what he thought she had in mind.

"So, I thought Eren could use… a friend, shall we say."

"Friend indeed does sound a lot better than a guard."

Hanji rolled her eyes. "Please. I don't want you to guard him. Just make sure… he doesn't transform."

"That's fucking easy, isn't it? Can I deaf and blind him and lock him in the dungeon?"

"No."

"Shame."

Eren shivered from cold, but his skin was warm as he had been the whole day in the sun. He had barely seen the sun, being in his room the whole day. The only person he had met today had been Hanji, who made very clear that he shouldn't go outside. Or more like, if he was seen outside, he would be put in the dungeon. Eren hadn't even asked why. He didn't want to know.

It was horrible to be locked inside. His window showed the training grounds and he saw his friends training. It was torture. He knew he was behind in training. The Corporal had made sure he knew that. Eren didn't even feel so sick anymore, he saw no reason for him to lie in bed all day like some spoiled brat. He was full of energy and rest was the last thing he needed.

He heard a knock and almost immediately the Corporal came in.

"Everything okay? You haven't fucked anything up yet?" he asked and kicked the chair, which Eren had brought back to the corner, towards the bed.

"I think so. I have just been lying down, so I don't believe I could have fucked anything up." Eren usually didn't curse in front of his superiors or forge to "sir" them, but he was pissed off. To his surprise, the Corporal didn't reply. He only sat down and started to go through some papers.

Why was Corporal Rivaille with Eren? Wasn't he busy? Was he guarding Eren? How could Eren prove himself to be trustworthy, when he wasn't given the chance? He was getting tired of this. He did his best, didn't complain about stupid orders or exams they wanted to do to him, and only thing he got was cold shoulders.

"I don't need a babysitter, sir", Eren said, trying to sound mature and vicious.

The Corporal looked up from his papers.

"I was aware of your slow brain, but I had no idea of your short term memory being this bad. We had this same conversation yesterday. I'm in charge of you, I have to keep an eye on you. I'm fucking busy, but no one seems to care about that shit, so here I am, watching you soil your sheets with snot. So do a favor for both of us, shut your mouth and let me work in peace. Otherwise, I make sure you regret every word that came out of it." Rivaille took a deep breath after his monologue. Fuck this boy, fuck this day. Fuck his mother, who had borne him into this motherfucking world.

He had to focus. The paper had some basic strategies, made by the best. He only had to accept them. But the lines wavered and his eyes hurt. The boy was still silent. Eren lied on his bed, his arms were crossed over his chest. He stared at the ceiling. If Rivaille didn't know better, he would say the boy was moping.

"If you have nothing better to do, we can play poker."

The boy lifted his head from the pillow.

"I don't know the rules."

"I can teach you."

This was complicated, Eren thought. It was really not an order, but still, there was no polite way to deny the opportunity. After all, his superior wanted to play with him. And he was right, Eren had nothing better to do.

"I would gladly learn, sir."

Rivaille smiled a bit.

"I will see about that."

The game was harder than Eren thought. Keeping in mind all the hands was tricky. The Corporal seemed to be good at poker, so Eren lost every single game. He didn't really care, he won another game; he saw the Corporal being relaxed and smiling, even if the smile was bitter and held back.

For the first six rounds everything went well. For Rivaille at least, he won every game. But the boy was learning and his losses didn't seem to bother him by the way he laughed. Then, almost suddenly after the sixth round, Jaeger's playing became even worse. To Rivaille it seemed like he couldn't focus the least.

Eren frowned. He couldn't see the colors of the cards, numbers even less so. His head was hurting so badly, it felt like someone was banging it with a hammer, a small, plastic hammer. Eren looked at his cards. He had to squint his eyes, but still couldn't see the numbers in them. The squinting made his head hurt much more.

"Jaeger? Don't you see the cards?" Rivaille had watched for a while how the boy struggled.

"I, I'm sorry sir. I don't see the numbers." Eren was beginning to worry. Had the little fever he had gone to his eyes? Was this permanent?

Rivaille gritted his teeth together. Hanji had left for an exploration some hours ago and wouldn't be back for a few days. They both have thought that Eren's flu was nothing serious. He reached to touch Eren's forehead. It was way too hot.

"Lay down. Your fever is too high." Rivaille took the cards from the boy and pushed him down maybe with too much force, but it didn't matter, because in the end, he had what he wanted. Eren was lying on the bed.

"Turn to your stomach", Rivaille advised him and searched for his first aid-kit. The thermometer was there, as he had hoped.

Eren did as the Corporal told him. He kept his eyes shut, the dim light of the room hurt his eyes. He heard the Corporal searching for something. The tiredness was taking over him, when he felt hands on the hem of his trousers.

It was not like Rivaille hadn't done this before. Maybe he hadn't done it so many times, but he was sure he had done it before. He just didn't remember when.

There was no room for embarrassment. The boy's temperature had to be taken, Hanji had told him it was important as the titans were usually steaming. So he yanked the boy's trousers down. He gazed at Eren for a moment. He seemed tense, which was no wonder regarding the situation. Rivaille gave a look at the boy's bottom. It was skinny, bony and white, rather flat. Still, it looked good, the skin was clean from scars. It had a little curve, Rivaille noticed, when he put his hand on the boy's right cheek.

"I will take your temperature. It will feel uncomfortable, but I'm sure you are used to feeling that." He spread Eren's cheeks with his other hand and thrust the thermometer in. He could have been gentler, true, but he had no will to that.

Eren's face was red. He didn't have any problems with his body, and there had never been a lot of privacy, because as children he and all his friends had taken baths at the same time and he still could change his clothes in front of anybody. But this was somehow different. His heart was beating so loudly, he thought the Corporal could hear it too.

When the thermometer was put in, Eren had to bite his lip. It didn't hurt, but as the Corporal had said, it was not nice. It was cold and hard, and Eren just wanted to pull it out as soon as he could.

Rivaille did his best to look away once the thermometer was put in. It was harder than he expected. Eren moved a bit and changed his position to a more comfortable one, which showed his bottom completely. It was of course not the first bottom Rivaille had seen, but the way it waved was something new. Eren moved like somebody was slapping him from side to side. He looked like a puppy waving its tail.

As the minutes passed, Rivaille had to use more and more of his self-control to ignore his hard-on, which rubbed his trousers. Finally, five minutes were over and the thermometer could be pulled out. First Rivaille put his gloves on. No way was he touching anyone's anus with bare hands.

The thermometer hurt more when it was pulled out than when it had been pushed in. When pulled, it felt like the thermometer was glued to Eren's insides and the Corporal was dragging his anus out with the thermometer. Hopefully, that was not the case.

Eren's fever was as high as Rivaille had supposed. He looked at the boy, who was now lying under many covers. Rivaille wanted him to sweat the fever off, but he wasn't sure if a cold bath would be a better idea.

Eren tried to sleep. His eyes hurt because of their dryness. His head felt like it was loose from the rest of his body. His legs were weak and so light he couldn't get hold of gravity. He pulled the covers close to his chest and shut his eyes. Then he did his best to empty his mind.

It wasn't the first time Rivaille had to sleep while sitting. It was an easy task for him. Unlike guarding Eren's sleep. The boy mumbled and squirmed in his sleep. Sweat drops were wetting his forehead. Rivaille took a cloth and wet it with cold water. Then he placed it on Eren's forehead. Eren's eyes opened a bit, but he still seemed to be fully asleep, so Rivaille let him be.

Eren was standing at a battlefield. Everything was burning. Flames were eating houses, from top to ground. And what was not burning, was already black from ash. The titans were bigger than ever, some seemed to have the sky on the top of their heads. The air was thick with ash, smoke and the steam, which came from the titans. Eren saw how people tried to attack, but that was no use. The steam coming from the titans burned them before they could cut the neck. Everything smelled like burned flesh. It was hard for Eren to breathe.

From nowhere, Corporal Rivaille came to his side.

"Eren. You have to transform. We have no other choice." He was speaking in short sentences, seemingly out of breath. His hair had burned from the back of his head, his chest was bloody.

Eren nodded and bit his thumb. His concentration was absolute.

Nothing happened, except Eren's thumb began to bleed. He bit again. He bit and bit and bit, still nothing. The more time passed, the more Eren began to panic. Strangely, the Corporal didn't show any sign of panic or frustration.

When Eren began to bit the thumb of his other hand, Rivaille straightened his back.

"Eren, you have to keep trying. I will win you more time. Just don't fucking waste it." He pulled his blades out and shot his hooks as near the titans as he could. And then he was gone.

Eren knew he should continue trying, but he couldn't. He followed the Corporal with his eyes. Rivaille sure was skilled. He killed one titan with throwing a knife, so he didn't have to go so close that the steam would burn him. The titans were too slow, if they were too close to Rivaille, they would die within seconds. Suddenly Mikasa was helping him. Those two killed titan after titan, they were like two perfectly working pieces of the same killing machine.

But then something went wrong. Eren couldn't see it because of the smoke and steam, but somehow one of the titans got Mikasa. The titan had her in its fist, like a toddler holding a spoon. The same titan had dropped the Corporal to the ground and crushed him with his foot. He had stepped on the Corporal, humanity's strongest soldier. The Corporal had been an ant to the titan.

The smoke and steam began to clear and Eren could see, how Rivaille's skull had broken. His brains had streamed out, they reminded Eren of a red, broken egg. He couldn't recognize the Corporal's face anymore. His body had been pressed to the ground so hard that parts of it had sunk in the damp soil.

The titan had Mikasa still in its fist and it had raised the fist closer to its face. The huge mouth opened and the titan bit Mikasa in half.

Eren's knees were shaking. He was afraid. Even if he could transform, even if he could kill all the titans, he wouldn't have anybody. He hadn't seen it, but he was sure Armin was gone already.

What if he transformed and lost the control? Who would kill him?

Never in his life had Eren been this scared. He couldn't move, he couldn't even see anything more than darkness.

"You are awake. The nightmare is a lie. Wake up", the voice was strict, but it was familiar. Eren followed it in the darkness.

"There's no need to keep your eyes shut. Open them."

The darkness faded. A titan was standing before him. The same that had killed his mother. And Eren was unarmed, he had lost his Maneuver Gear somewhere. The titan kneeled down and took Eren by his collar. He was lifted to face the titan. Its eyes were bigger than him.

The titan smiled at him. Then it opened its huge mouth and ate Eren. The mouth was warm and wet. Eren was sweating, he felt like he was melting.

"Open your eyes!"

He obeyed the voice.


	3. Chapter 3

Eren was gasping for air as a fish on dry ground. He was so hot, he couldn't breathe. Vomit was rising in his throat. His eyes were watering and the water started to run down his cheeks. Breathing through his nose wasn't possible, but his throat was in flames when he tried to breathe through his mouth. He saw a room, a dark room with a little light somewhere far away.

"Get a grip of yourself!" Rivaille had no idea what to do. It was rare, but it happened. The boy was hyperventilating, he couldn't get air. When Rivaille tried to keep the boy in place, he felt how sweaty and hot he was. Rivaille thought he was holding a flame. The boy had to be cooled down.

Carrying Eren was hard. Not because of the boy weight, he was surprisingly light, but his height. Rivaille had to carry him over his shoulder. The boy was mostly quiet, but once in a while he began to trash. Rivaille had failed to wake him. Bringing the boy to the public showers would be a misstep, so Rivaille brought him to his own chambers.

The boy's clothes were wet from sweat. That made Rivaille wrinkle his nose in disgust, but he had to undress the boy. When the boy only had his underwear on, Rivaille put him in bath. He sighed, now he only had to fill the bath with ice cold water.

Eren was so cold. He was drowning in ice. His blood was freezing. He tried to open his eyes to see where he was, but the bright light made his eyes burn.

Rivaille noticed that Eren was protecting his eyes with his hands. Maybe they hurt the worst? Carefully he wet a towel and covered Eren's eyes with it. He removed the boy's hands gently and pushed them into the water. Eren was crying, or maybe it was just the cold water running down his cheek.

The trembling decreased, Rivaille observed, and Eren didn't scream so much. He removed the towel from the boy's eyes with care. Eren blinked two times and after that, he opened his mouth and muttered: "Corporal? Is everything okay?"

"If you don't count waking half the building, then everything's just fine."

"I'm very cold", Eren's voice was weak and raspy. His teeth clicked together because of his shivering. Rivaille threw a towel at him.

"Dry yourself and get dressed", he ordered. Then he remembered that all the boy's clothes were full of sweat. "I will get you some clothes", he promised before leaving Eren alone.

Eren took hold of the sides of the bathtub and did his best to stand up. His legs were wobbly, but somehow he made it out of the tub. The only piece of clothing that he had was his underwear. Even they were so wet that they cling to his legs. That observation made him blush a bit, the Corporal had most likely seen all of his body. The towel that the Corporal had left for him was very soft, unlike those in his own use. The Corporal wouldn't like water spots on his floor, so Eren dried himself as well as he could with his shaking hands.

Rivaille knew his clothes wouldn't fit Eren. And even if they did, he wouldn't lend his clothes. That was gross, getting somebody's dead skin to his own clothes. So he had to go to the clothing stock. He was not sure of the boy's size, but he took some underwear and shirts, all one size less or more than others. Then he hurried back to his room, hoping the boy hadn't cracked his skull open while trying to get up from the tub.

Eren pulled his underwear off. It was getting warm because of the heath of his skin, but it was still wet, so it was really unpleasing to wear. He wrapped himself in the towel. The Corporal had seen him almost naked already, he knew that, but that didn't mean he wanted to wander around without any clothing. Eren was beginning to understand the situation. He had apparently had a nightmare so bad that the Corporal had to bathe him in a tub full of ice cold water to wake him. He was mad at himself. The things he had seen had only been nightmares, but they had had so much impact on him that he was still shivering.

"I had no idea of your size, but one of these better fit you", Rivaille said and tossed the boy the clothes he had brought. Eren dropped the towel and started to dress himself, Rivaille turned his back at him. Privacy was something that the Corporal valued for himself, so he was willing to give it to others also.

The boxers were too little and the sleeves of the shirt were too long for him, but the clothes were dry and warm, so Eren had nothing to complain about.

"And then back to bed. Your fever will get worse if you don't rest", the Corporal said and crossed his arms, clearly waiting.

"Are we going back to my room?"

"Why would we do that? You can sleep just as fine in my bed."

It was awkward to sleep in the Corporal's bed. Eren tried to use as little area as possible, he feared that he was filthy and the bed would disgust the Corporal afterwards. He gazed side views at the Corporal, who was sitting at the window shelf and looking outside. The night was dark and it rained. Eren closed his eyes. Sleeping didn't tempt him, but he knew he should at least rest.

The Corporal sat by his bedside and stroked Eren's face in a gentle way. Eren felt more in peace than for a long time. And Rivaille himself looked a lot happier. The wrinkles he had on his forehead from frowning were lighter than usually. The room was full of smooth, warm light.

Eren woke up. He was alone in the Corporal's room. How did he dare to dream like that? In the Corporal's own bed even. He had to get a grip of his emotions, there was no place or time for them.

The fever was not as bad as it had been. Breathing was easier. But Eren had to rest, because he was ordered to. He sighed in frustration. How come he couldn't even do a little running? That wouldn't kill him.

No one was looking after him at that moment. He didn't know where the Corporal was, but hopefully he would be gone for a few hours. It was more than enough time for Eren to go outside. He wouldn't train, of course he wouldn't, he knew he was still sick. But a little walk wouldn't hurt, it could even ease his headache.

First Eren had to make his way to his own room to get some proper clothes. He took his jacket and put trousers on. It felt good to be fully dressed, he had felt more fragile without his jacket. The jacket was a mark of him being a part of the Scouting Legion. It gave him power, it gave him a place where he belonged. His boots felt much more pleasing than the floor under bare feet.

And the sun, which shone on him, made him feel alive. It chased away the terrors of the night. The rain had left the air smell clean and fresh. It was good to be outside.

"What the fuck you are doing here?" Eren was so surprised by the yell that he didn't even react, before the Corporal was standing by his side.

"Inside", Rivaille rasped and took a grip of Eren's arm. His hold was strong and Eren was sure it would give him bruises. The Corporal pulled him inside and Eren had no choice but follow him back to Corporal Rivaille's room.

Rivaille was sick of this. He hadn't had a chance to sleep, having to watch Eren. His coffee had been awful, bland and cold. And now Eren Jaeger was doing as he damn well pleased, for a second time in a few days. Rivaille couldn't allow that. No matter how little those disobediences were, they could cost lives at the field.

"What the fuck was that? Didn't you understand when I told you not to go outside? How many times I have to repeat it before your little brains get the message?"

Rivaille hated how the boy could look down at him, when he was lecturing him. So he pushed the boy to his bed.

"This is the second time, Jaeger!"

Eren didn't want to reply. The way the Corporal was handling him, made him feel like a stupid brat. He didn't appreciate that feeling. So he kept his mouth shut.

"I'm counting to ten before I will beat it out of you!" Rivaille threatened. Fuck he was tired of this boy.

"If you weren't yelling so much, I could have some time to answer", Eren muttered rebelliously. He knew it wasn't wise, but he was tired of Corporal Rivaille.

They both were quiet for a while. Eren was staring at his feet so the Corporal wouldn't see how angry and frustrated he was. The Corporal himself seemed to be lost in thought.

"Stand up." It was clearly an order. It was given with a dry voice, there was no room for disobedience. Eren did as he was told, he was in enough trouble as it was. He stood so that the Corporal was standing behind him.

"Bend over, hands on your knees."

Eren heard how a belt was pulled out. Its buckle clicked when the belt was moved. He had a damn good idea what his punishment was going to be.

"Count them."

The belt hurt. Every time it hit him, Eren felt like crying out. But he didn't. Instead he bit his lip until it bleed and pressed his knees with white knuckles. Every hit felt like fire, and it left a wide area of pain. It only didn't hurt the spot that it hit, the pain seemed to radiate by his skin. The Corporal hit so hard that Eren thought he tried to tear his skin open. His trousers were a short cry of protection. Counting the hits was difficult, because he gasped after every hit, and almost before he could stutter the number of the hit, the next blow came.

Rivaille knew people thought him to be a sadist. He wasn't. He did use force when needed and didn't mind violence when necessary. But he didn't enjoy it. Of course, part of him was pleased to see Eren learning his lesson, but most of him was just weary. If the boy was any smarter, they wouldn't have to do this. He decided that fifteen blows were enough. Eren wasn't crying yet, but by the way his breath was hitching, he wasn't far from it.

"What did you learn?" Rivaille asked. He prayed that the boy would give him the right answer. Because he himself didn't know it.

"To stay in line", Eren said and then quickly added, "sir."

Eren was in his bed, again. And the Corporal was sitting at the window shelf, again. Neither of them spoke. The pain on Eren's bottom had changed to warmth that made his skin sensitive and stinging.

Rivaille pitied the boy. He was aware of how much the belt hurt. Maybe fifteen had been too much? Eren was sick and feverish, he had enough pain. But Rivaille's hands were tied. If he was going to befriend the boy, it would only end in problems. Eren was trusted in his charge because his superiors were sure that if it was necessary, Rivaille would kill the boy without a second thought. If the superiors began to doubt that, they both would be in shitload of trouble.

"How about another round of poker? Try not to lose this one", Rivaille suggested. Eren turned to look him in the eyes.

"Yes sir."

Eren was an ideal subordinate for the rest of the day. He didn't speak unless spoken to, didn't forget to "sir" and kept his tongue in hold. Rivaille hated that, but instead of talking about the issue, he stuck his role as Eren's superior. Didn't mutter anything but orders, didn't look him in the eyes. Their game of poker was unpleasing and after three rounds they both had had enough. For stuff like this, Rivaille hated kids. They would sulk for necessary things that they brought upon themselves.

The heavy silence, which corrupted the air, eased when Eren fell asleep. It wasn't night yet, but Rivaille understood the boy's need for a nap. He tried to amuse himself with a book, but instead, stuck to viewing Eren's face.

The innocence, which couldn't be seen when the boy was awake, dominated his face while he slept. His eyebrows weren't so heavily wrinkled, his eyes were closed, so the flame of will couldn't be seen. Rivaille smiled at himself, he was getting soft. Then he stroked the boy's face gently. Eren's skin was unexpectedly smooth. Smile came to Eren's face, when Rivaille continued stroking. It seemed the boy could sleep in peace for a moment at least.

Eren's mother was stroking his face. He had missed his mother so much, but his tongue seemed tied and he couldn't tell his mother, how much he loved her. He couldn't apologize for joining the Scouting Legion against her will. He was so sorry for not saving her. His mother was smiling at him.

When Eren woke up, he was alone in the darkness.

**AN: I just want to make this clear: I want to write a realistic relationship for these two, so this fic will not contain rape. **

**And also, I'm thinking of making this a first part of a series. Would you be interested in reading part two? And should I call Rivaille Levi?**

**I hope for comments!**


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